State Fair 2016

We normally have plenty of opportunities to go to the fair, but our days filled up fast this year so we had to go on Sunday.  It was Esme's first fair and she did great!  We got there even earlier than normal at 7:20.  It was a bit chilly, but very humid.  

We brought just the small stroller and carried Esme most of the day.  

After getting mini donuts we went to Little Farm Hands, which was much easier first thing in the morning.  This was our best year yet.  Despite being distracted by the old tractors next door he did pretty well and got a juice box at the end for all his hard work.

We also went back around to see the spinning gears.  Parker was very sad to leave this area.

Parker loved the slide two year ago and I went with him this year.  He started to cry towards to top, but smiled on the way down.

We walked through a couple animal barns and the bizarre before giving Parker some play time at the big sand box.

Esme took a couple good naps and only made a peep when she was getting hungry.  These pictures were taken less than 2 minutes apart...rough being a baby!

Our final stop on the way out was for Sweet Martha's cookies.  Parker approved!

It was a tasty trip as always.  One of these years we will have to make a whole day of it, but I don't know if I can convince Jimmy to do that!

Avocado

Esme tried her second food last night, avocado!  Either she really liked it, or just got a lot better at eating in a couple days!

 I normally take Esme's weekly picture in the evening, but I knew I wouldn't have time this week, so I took it in the morning.  Parker hasn't really been interested before, but I kept having to distract him to get him away from her and the blocks.  I got some cute pictures of them together though.

 Parker vs. Esme

Wet Weekend and Other Firsts

Ugh, it was a wet, chilly weekend!  We planned to go Country Daze for free family day, but the rain put a bit of a damper on it.  I woke up Saturday with a swollen, red, painful, light sensitive eye!  I took the kids to my parents and went to the doctor.  Turns our my cornea was oxygen deprived and got a little ticked off.  It was pretty much back to normal with ice and drops after 24 hours.  The rain let up in the afternoon, so we stopped by the festival to check things out.

 The turnout was very small, so Parker got to jump for as long as he wanted in the bounce house.

 We got the go ahead to start solids with Esme at her appointment last week.  I picked up some oatmeal cereal and gave it a try tonight.  She did pretty well with it, but has some work to do.  We did cereal for 2 months before adding other things with Parker, but will just go all in this time.  We will wait a few days to make sure she doesn't have an allergic reaction then try some avocado.

 She is almost too big for the swing so we broke out the exersaucer.  She loves any upright position, but hasn't started playing with any of the stuff yet.  Luckily she has an awesome big brother to act as DJ!  I am sure she will be spinning in no time!

Here are the videos I had promised as well.  The first is from about a month ago and the second is from this weekend.  Please excuse pantsless Parker, he rarely goes without bottoms, but happened to take them off just before this super cute moment.  I am loving watching their relationship grow and evolve.

Another Birthday

Another birthday has come and gone for Jimmy and myself.  We originally planned to keep it very simple, but ended up doing a couple fun things.  Instead of a physical gift this year, I just asked Jimmy to watch the kids while I had a girl's night out.  We headed over to NOLA in Osseo for drinks and appetizers.  I had a Hurricane which was a combo of rums and fruit juices and the NOLA version of poutine.  You may remember how much I love poutine, so I just couldn't resist.  It was a bed of mashed potatoes, cheesy gravy, and andouille sausage.  I was so delicious and I will be back for it!

We weren't planning to go out for dinner on our birthday (Friday), but my mom called and asked if we wanted her to take the kids for a couple hours.  Of course we said yes, so we went to Red Robin to redeem our free birthday burgers.  We also indulged in the Towering Onion Rings (so tasty Jimmy couldn't take his eyes away.

We also got free sundaes, which we've never been given before.  We were planning to get some dessert at Cherry Berry, but free is even better!

There were also brownies when we got back to my parents to pick up the kids.  Esme didn't want to share any of her dessert!

Here are her weekly pictures from Thursday.  I updated her 4 month post to include the official measurements from Tuesday.  She is 25" long and weighs 15 lbs. 3 oz.  She went from 1.5 lbs smaller than Parker at birth to 1.5 lbs bigger at 4 months!  She's been doing a lot of laughing lately, especially at Parker.  I will share some sweet videos later this week.

Esme June - Four Months Old

Esme is four months old today.  The days are going by so fast, but we are just soaking them up.  Esme's favorite activity is anything that included sitting up.  She really enjoys being in her bumbo and watching Parker run around.  She has also become very fond of her activity mat and will reach up and grab the animals.  Objects in general are becoming intriguing.  She will give belly laughs and sweet giggles when Jimmy gives her kisses.  She has started to roll more and even rolled once from her back to her tummy.  We had already stopped using the swaddle and that confirmed our decision.  She loves to twist her body back and forth to "scoot" around and will lift her legs and slam them down when she wakes up.  I sleep through it, but it wakes Jimmy up.  She weighed in at 15 lbs. 3.2 oz (70%) and is 25" long (72%), both of which are a big increase from her last appointment.  She was born about 1.5 lbs less that Parker and is now 1.5 lbs more than he was at 4 months! She is still wearing 3 month clothes, but they are getting very snug and she will be moving to 6 month soon.  She wears size 2 diapers, but has started to leak through sometimes at night so we may have to get some overnight ones.  She is eating 7 ounces every 3-4 hours during the day and will regularly sleep 8 hours or more at night, which sometimes mean she is up at 4.  She is a quick eater and goes right back down, so I don't miss much sleep.  We did a little beach photo shoot at the lake on Saturday and got some cute shots along with our regular pictures at home today.  Enjoy the pictures and have a great week!

Le Chateau de Buxtoronio

"Jimmy Weekend" has officially ended.  What is "Jimmy Weekend" you ask?  Jimmy originally planned to have a weekend home alone before Esme was born and Parker and I were going to go to my parents.  This got sped up a bit when it became clear she was coming early.  A couple months ago he mentioned still wanting to have a weekend to himself so we got something scheduled.  Jimmy dropped the kids off Friday morning and I headed to my parents' house after work.  We've joked for a long time about them having a bed and breakfast when we stay over and it has officially been named Le Chateau de Buxtoronio.  It's way over-priced, but the hospitality and cuisine can't be beat!  We spent Friday night switching between preseason football and the olympics.  Esme also got her first bath in a big tub.

 We got out on the boat for the first time this year.  Esme wasn't a fan of the life jacket at first, but the pacifier calmed her down.

We didn't get out on the boat last year and our one time on a pontoon didn't go well.  He did cry when we first got in, but calmed down on grandpa's knee.  He pretty much refused to be anywhere else while on the boat and practically leaped off when we were back on the beach.

 Esme went swimming too, but only for a few minutes because it was a little chilly for her.

 It wouldn't be a "vacation" without food pictures!  We had fresh corn on the cob, pasta salad and bacon cheeseburgers for dinner Saturday night.

Dessert was an adventure!  My mom got a new camp oven and decided to try it out by making brownies.  It took almost an hour for them to be cooked through, but that was also enough time to thoroughly burn the bottom.

We just filleted the burnt part off and made yummy brownie sundaes!

 Esme knocked out her first soak in the hot tub this morning.  They had already turned it down to 99 for the summer, so it wasn't too hot for her.

 This classy place sends you off in style with a ride around the property.  Overall, I give it 4 out of 5 stars, but only because I want them to strive for excellence and not slack off with a perfect rating.  Thanks for letting us hang out with you Grandpa and Nana!